The Calais ‘Jungle’ Clinic
Meet the healthcare workers treating the people living in one of the worst refugee camps in Europe.
This week the French riot police and demolition workers moved into the refugee and migrant camp in Calais known as “The Jungle”.
It’s home to several thousand people who have found temporary refuge while they wait to process their paperwork.
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They may be a little closer to their desired final destination – the UK – but the arduous journey and the squalid conditions in this camp have left a community battling injury and illness.
Recent estimates put the population at the camp at around 5,000 people. Medical organisations such as Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and Doctors of the World (MDM) are attending to those who are sick and doing so within a very difficult environment.
“If these doctors weren’t here, our situation would be much worse,” says Mohammed Reza, who left Iran seven years ago and has only been in the ‘Jungle’ for two months. “But treatment isn’t just medication. It’s a good diet, good rest, no stress. Good mental health. Without all that, how can we get better?”
Many of the camp residents, as well as the medical staff, have confirmed accusations of police brutality and tear gassing by the local police authorities.
Join The Cure presenter Dr Javid Abdelmoneim as he meets the medics and healthcare workers on one of the main frontlines of Europe’s refugee crisis.
Disclaimer: Dr Javid Abdelmoneim became an unpaid board member of MSF UK in May 2015. All editorial decisions relating to the film were made by Al Jazeera.